Expand+GER20230 Transcultural Encounters 1
Academic Year 2021/2022

As a result of the bilateral agreement between Turkey and West Germany in 1961, Turks are now Germany’s largest minority and Berlin has one of the largest Turkish populations of any ci...

Hide-GER20230 Transcultural Encounters 1
Academic Year 2021/2022

As a result of the bilateral agreement between Turkey and West Germany in 1961, Turks are now Germany’s largest minority and Berlin has one of the largest Turkish populations of any city. This module will equip students with an in-depth knowledge of post-War Germany’s history, society and cultural landscape from the Turkish-German perspective through analysis of a diverse selection of poems from the ’70s to the present day, including rap and hip-hop. Identity will be the module’s unifying theme. The writing and context of the ‘guest worker’ generation will be examined primarily, centring on the themes of labour, exploitation and estrangement, which will then be compared and contrasted with the poetry of the second generation, whose work deals with xenophobia, hybridity and Islam. Poetry is a particularly popular medium for writers of Turkish origin and students will be introduced to the work of important contemporary poets, such as Aras Ören, Zehra Çirak and Zafer Senocak.

Learning Outcomes:
in-depth knowledge of the history of Turkish labour migration to Germany and its impact upon contemporary society;

clear understanding of the major themes and events that have shaped the Turkish-German community and wider society;

confidence when engaging in discussion, debate and written presentation of the course’s key issues;

highly developed skills in analysing poetic texts, reflected in high-quality academic writing and thoughtful literary translations;

appropriate use of theoretical frameworks to explore ideas expressed in poetry, particularly with regard to the concept of identity;

conceptual outlook necessary to take on level 3 modules;

transferable skills for language-learning, further study and the world of work: IT, communication, organisation, argumentation, intercultural competences.

Indicative Module Content:
analysing poetry; labour migration to Germany; Turkish-Germans and the fall of the Berlin Wall; xenophobia and racism in Germany; literary translation; identity and multiculturalism